Every strong trend experiences some kind of backlash sooner or later. Recent years have seen an exponential growth in the number of people seemingly hooked on the internet and mobile communication devices.
A recent worldwide experiment called World Unplugged found that 1,000 young people reported symptoms similar to drug withdrawal when they were forced to go without the internet and mobile devices for 24 hours.
I don’t think we can expect a mass exodus away from the internet and mobile communications, but there is likely to be a backlash of some kind. It will probably take the form of devices being banned from certain establishments – restaurants for example.
It’s also likely that bars, restaurants and hotels will boast that they have ‘no Wi-Fi’ to attract a particular group of customers who are either averse to the new technology, or simply want a break from it.
It also seems likely that parents, becoming increasingly worried by the level of their children’s mobile and internet use, will become open to more basic child-centred activities, with the focus on fresh air and exercise.
The difficult task for entrepreneurs is to get the timing right. I’m not sure that the UK is ready for Wi-Fi free zones yet, but the time will come soon. Definitely a situation to keep monitoring. As with any backlash, there will be a lot of money to be made when the time is right.
Motivational Quote Of The Day
“Our business in life is not to get ahead of others, but to get ahead of ourselves.”
E Joseph Cossman
Alternative Quote Of The Day
“These are my principles. If you don’t like them, I have others.”
Mitch Hedberg
A Cut Above
It’s not unusual to get offered a cup of coffee and a chocolate digestive while you’re having your haircut, but London salon Percy & Reeds have taken the refreshments concept to a whole new level.
When you book a morning appointment online, you’re invited to order in advance from a breakfast menu that includes hot sandwiches, porridge, croissants and cereals. A choice of hot and cold beverages and newspaper completes the picture. Everything is outsourced and simply added to the client’s bill.
In a competitive environment, anything that gives you an edge over the competition can be extremely valuable. Is there an add-on service you can bolt on to your business which will differentiate you from all your me- to competitors?
Today’s National Day
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Anyone can put together a scrapbook documenting their life, children or an event, but a lot of people don’t have the time or inclination to do it. In the United States, people who don’t want to do the scrapbooking themselves are hiring other people to do the job for them.
Scrapbooking expert Sue Di Franco reckons it’s possible to earn between £30 and £100 an hour assembling scrapbooks for cash rich, time poor people. Di Franco says that anyone can do it and you don’t need to be particularly artistic. Her experience is that customers prefer simple layouts, and because they’re not scrap bookers themselves, they won’t be comparing your work with anyone else’s.
Just because we’re in difficult economic times, doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of people around with money to spend on things like this. There are. It’s a big mistake to think that everyone is on their uppers. They’re not. Even in the worst of economic times, some people are doing well and are happy to spend money on luxury products and services.
Clothes Tour
Here’s a strange thing …a company at the top end of a market, adapting an idea from the bottom end, and making it work.
I’m sure you’re familiar with the concept of the one day sale. A company hire a hall or empty shop unit and hold a one day sale of sports goods, leather goods, jewellery, furniture or something else. These sales almost always operate at the lower end of the market. The key selling point is that this stuff is dirt cheap and it won’t be here tomorrow.
Clemens en August do something remarkably similar, but at the other end of the market. They are a high end Munich based fashion retailer, but their clothes aren’t available in shops or online. Instead, each season they travel to international cities, selling their collections in contemporary art galleries for only three days at a time.
This tour system allows the company to cut out the retail margin, and the selling point is very similar-this is very attractively priced, and if you don’t buy today, it won’t be here tomorrow. Exclusivity is added into the mix.
The concept has been dubbed ‘clothes on tour’.
It’s an interesting concept isn’t it, and I’m sure it’s something that could be applied to other markets. Remember the key factors – a time-limited opportunity to buy an exclusive product at an attractive price. Here today, but gone tomorrow.
It’s well over a year now since I first wrote to you about peer to peer lending and what I was doing. I think it’s time for an update – things have got even better – but first a brief recap:
Interest rates on saving have been pathetically low for several years now, and there’s no sign that‘s about to change any time soon. In fact, just this morning, rates were slashed to the bone in response to the Coronavirus outbreak.
Alternatives? Well how’s the stockmarket been working out for you recently? If you’re anything like me, not very well at all!
About three years ago, all this caused me to start looking at peer-to-peer lending. I opened accounts with a number of companies and started lending money out at anything from 3% to 8.5% per annum – much better than the rates on offer from regular institutions. On the whole, the experience has been excellent. My returns from the cash I had sitting earning next to nothing in bank accounts has gone through the roof, and any risks there are have been mitigated by spreading funds.
But it isn’t for everyone (or it wasn’t!) because there can be drawbacks:
1. Entry requirements can be prohibitive
Some peer to peer lenders require that you self-identify as a high net worth individual. That means an income of over £100,000 a year or assets in excess of £250,000, which rules out most of us.
2. Security can be less than perfect
To my mind, the best loans to invest in are those secured by property. Property values are relatively stable, so if the loan is secured against a property at a maximum of 70% LTV, there should always be plenty of security there if the borrower defaults (although returns are never guaranteed).
However, some companies lend to individuals on an unsecured basis, and others lend to businesses, secured on the assets of the business. Neither offer the same level of security as property and so headline rates can be eaten into by defaults.
3. Company websites can be complicated
Sometimes it’s hard to see exactly what’s going in or what you’re investing in, and the nature of the loans you’re investing in, isn’t really clear.
4. Some loans can be long term
I don’t like to tie my money up for more than a year. Some companies specialise in loans of 3 to 5 years, meaning you can’t get your hands on your money if you need or want it quickly.
Now if you’re a millionaire, happy to tie your money up for several years and can spread your money wide enough to take the rough with the smooth, none of this is a deal-breaker. As I said before, I’ve done very well out of peer-to-peer lending.
But what if you just want a reasonably secure home for your nest egg, where you can invest smaller amounts quickly and simply…and get better returns than most of the other companies out there…and way more than the banks or other regular financial institutions?
About 18 months ago, I discovered a company called Kuflink, and started moving a lot of my peer to peer lending in their direction. If you’re a fan of Premiership football you might have seen the name displayed prominently at pitch side at Southampton home games. The company are a major sponsor of the club.
Let me tell you why I like Kuflink…
All loans are secured against property at a very comfortable loan to value, so risks are relatively low, and there is ample coverage should anyone default.
Loans are typically for 12 months or less, so you have fast access to your funds.
The website is simple and easy to use. You can be up and running and investing in 15 minutes.
Investment clarity. You can see exactly which property loan you’re investing in, read the valuation reports and see the actual property. You could even go a stage further and see it if you wanted to!
There’s the option to invest in a ‘basket of loans’ to spread risk and make the whole process even easier.
The company put their own money on the line by investing in each loan before outside investors.
Returns are between 6.5% and 7.2% Authorised by The Financial Conduct Authority.
And the icing on the cake? You don’t need to be a millionaire (or anything like it) to invest and start benefitting. You can open an account with as little as £100 and start investing with that.
I’ve looked at over a dozen peer to peer lending sites and invested in at least six. In my opinion, Kuflink offers the best combination of returns, security, clarity and simplicity for anyone who has a spare cash languishing in a bank account and wants a better return without undue risk or effort, or tying their money up for several years.
I now have a substantial six figure sum invested through Kuflink and recently moved another slice of my peer to peer lending over to the company following a meeting with the company chief executive who impressed me with the lengths the company go to, to keep investor’s money safe.
If you do decide to invest using this link, aside from the 6.5% to 7.2% you’ll earn, I’ve arranged for you to receive a bonus cashback of between 2.5% and 4% if you invest at least £1,000. So that’s quite a return on your money in the first year – as much as 11.2%. But that’s only if you invest through the link. This isn’t an offer that’s open to everyone.
I’m not authorised to give you any kind of financial advice – I’m just giving you my opinion and telling you what I’m doing – but if you have any questions about my personal experience with Kuflink or any of the other peer to peer lenders, just drop me an email at John@streetwisepublications.co.uk.
Don’t forget that in order to qualify for the 2.5% to 4% cashback, you’ll need to use the link I gave you earlier. It’s not for everyone!
“I cook with wine, sometimes I even add it to the food.”
W.C Fields
Become A Fitness Guru
Let’s be honest, getting in shape isn’t that complicated – it certainly isn’t rocket science. Ordinary folk do it all the time and there are many different ways of reaching the same destination. Yoga, weight training, interval training, pilates and cycling are just a few of the proven ways to get in better shape. If you’ve used one of these, or something completely different, you may have the basis of a profitable business in your own body.
Tens of millions (perhaps hundreds) are spent every year by people in search of ‘the secret’ to getting in shape. If you’ve found a way that works for you, perhaps it will work for others too. It could be worth thinking about how you could turn what you already know into cash. Books, courses, personal training sessions and group classes are just a few of the ways you could make money in this field.
I live right by the woods and often get ‘attacked’ by dogs that look like they’ve been bathing in mud. As mucky as their paw marks make my clothes, I can’t help wondering what kind of mess they make once they get home. Perhaps their owners would appreciate a German idea I recently came across.
Lars Schutze has located Germany’s first Dog Wash right next to the car wash he already owns. For less than five euros, owners can foam, shower and dry their pets while they’re waiting for their car to be cleaned. Given that bathing a dog usually involves a huge amount of mess and inconvenience that seems like a good deal.
I can see no reason why something like this wouldn’t work here. Taking the dog for a walk and then arriving back home with a pristine car and a spotless dog seems a pretty good combination to me. Time for someone to reach a mutually beneficial deal with a car wash owner.
Motivational Quote Of The Day
“The best way to predict the future is to create it.”
Peter Drucker
Alternative Quote Of The Day
“Once I was doing a sponsored walk. In the end I managed to raise so much money, I could afford a taxi.”
Jimmy Carr
Vintage Clothing Trading
If my daughter and her friends are anything to go by, vintage clothing is in vogue at the moment. A combination of environmental concern and the desire to have something you won’t find on the High Street is leading many young people to seek out vintage items. It seems to me that there is money to be made here.
One person’s old tat is another person’s vintage. By scouring charity shops and jumble sales for bargains, cleaning them up and then selling them on via eBay or concession in an existing shop, it should be possible to make some interesting profits.
The key here is that you need to have an eye for fashion and a firm idea what’s likely to appeal to vintage clothes lovers. Not one for me then, but certainly an opportunity for the right person.
Thanks to the likes of eBay, buying second hand or used goods has never been as popular (or easy) as it is today. A lot of mainstream retailers are catching on to this now. You’ve been able to buy used books on Amazon for a long time now, but even primarily off-line businesses are getting in on the act. My favourite retailer, Ikea, have now set up a system to facilitate customers disposing of their second hand furniture.
At first glance, this seems counter-intuitive, but there is a logic to it. Having the option to buy used (and cheaper) second hand furniture will draw more people to the company website, as well as improving customer goodwill. And of course, sometimes a customer needs to dispose of an old piece of furniture before they’re able to buy a new one.
Is there some way you could facilitate your customers disposing of the products they no longer need or want, and if there is, would it help or hinder your business? It’s a question worth asking.
Motivational Quote Of The Day
“Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.”
Dr Seus
Alternative Quote Of The Day
“Everything is funny, as long as it’s happening to somebody else.”
Will Rogers
Become An Image Consultant
Many people bemoan their lack of qualifications or experience and yet there are many businesses and projects you can start with little more than a bit of ‘front’.
Take Image Consultant as an example.
If you have an eye for design and a basic understanding of colour and fashion, a career as an image consultant may be little more than a website away. Personal appearance seems to becoming increasingly important, both socially and in the workplace, and many people are insecure about the way they look. An image consultant is often brought in to revamp a wardrobe, give a makeover for an important event or totally revamp an image.
If fashion and design is an area you’re comfortable in, this could be worth researching in detail. There’s money in vanity!
Today’s National Day
NATIONAL LOOK A LIKE DAY!
PUBLISHERS NOTICE
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